Vandals tore trees in two at a Pontefract park

Holly Gittins

Vandals tore the tops off of two trees at Friarwood Valley Gardens in the third act of vandalism the park has seen in a month.

The two cherry trees, which were planted in the park less than two years ago, were torn in half by vandals.

Last month, vandals caused �700 of damage to the park stage.

It is believed that the damage occurred on the evening of Sunday, September 30.

Colin White, Chair of voluntary group Friends of Friarwood Valley Gardens, said: “We have this avenue of flowering cherry trees which is quite famous locally. They were put in during the 1950s when the park was first created but they have a limited lifespan of about 60 years and then disease and rot destroy them.

“We think CCTV could work and we are looking at it seriously. We’re going to have to apply for a grant for solar powered CCTV, but we’ve had a local company offer to monitor the feed in their office and link it up to their wifi.”